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	Prometheus Home					Prometheus Release For Once We Win! FCC Commissioners Create New Low Power Radio Service In Response To Overwhelming Public Support

		Prometheus Press Releases Prometheus Lawsuit Stays Implementation of New Ownership Rules September 4, 2003 Study Shows Interference Claims Are Red Herring July 13, 2003 More Releases Prometheus in the News Low Power, High Intensity Columbia Journalism Review Prometheus has played a significant role in the struggle by community groups to establish low-power radio stations - a struggle that has involved the FCC, the National Association of Broadcasters, and National Public Radio. Read the Q&A with Petri Opposition to Big Media could invigorate low-power FM radio. Salon.com "Low-power radio stations give voice to diversity of 'underserved' towns" The Denver Post "No Power to the People" Scientific American takes a look at the low-power FM debate Scientific American studies claims that Low-power FM radio will cause unacceptable interference and concludes that "congress may have been reacting more to political pressure than technical data, which suggest that whatever interference LPFM stations generate will be too low to matter." More Articles Prometheus Articles Special Interest Noise The NAB/NPR attempt to dupe Congress on interference More Articles				January 20, 2000 The Commissioners at the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) voted to create a new Low Power FM (LPFM) radio service. Despite requests from groups such as the National Association of Broadcasters for a fifth delay in the proceeeding, the FCC showed that they have been listening to the public by voting in favor of LPFM. "The American Public deserves a non-commercial low power radio service," says Joan Dark of the Prometheus Radio Project (PRP). "We are cautiously enthusiastic that the Commission will for once live up to its mandate: protecting the airwaves for the citizens of this country. The corporate fatcats got used to thinking of the airwaves as their own private fiefdom, but the Commissioners today reaffirmed that the airwaves belong to everyone." Key points in the Prometheus Radio Proposal were: Digital radio on new spectrum, with room for new entrants. Allow LPFM stations on second and third adjacent channels. A preference for radio stations that operate like a cable access TV station. One station per organization, and restrictions favoring local ownership. Non-commercial, non-transferable ownership. 100 watt limit in top 50 markets, 250 watts in next fifty markets, 1000 watts everywhere else. Primary status for LPFMs Amnesty for all microbroadcasters "We will not relax or rejoice too much till we get a good look at the text of the new rules," says the PRPs Pete triDish. "When I was a pirate, I faced police and field agents, but I am much more scared of lawyers and bureaucrats -- the ones who can rob you with a pen rather than a sword. The FCC has made it clear that they want to try to be more responsive to the public. I look forward to working with then to see if they can really make a radio service for the rest of us." Prometheus Radio Project (PRP) is a Philadelphia-based non-profit educational organization composed of media activits who, in the past, participated in the civil disobediance unlicensed broadcasting campaign that brought the issue of low-power radio to the forefront of the FCCs agenda. PRP has participated in engineering research studies that suggessted the second and third adjacent restrictions can be lifted in the FM band without creating harmful interference. Since its formation in the spring of 1999, the Project has been very involved in the process of this rulenmaking and is looking forward to assisting community groups in applying for LPFM licenses. They will provide technical assistance, programming advice, workshops, trainings and resources for non-commercial low power community broadcasters.



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